Public education expenditure and economic growth: based on panel data from 2009 to 2019 in China

Public education expenditure is the largest public expenditure and the foundation of education development in China. This paper uses Cobb-Douglas production function model to analyze the relationship between public education expenditure and China's economic growth, and explores the impact of the proportion of public education expenditure in primary, secondary and tertiary education expenditure on economic growth. The results show that public education expenditure has a positive effect on economic growth, and that secondary education accounts for the largest contribution to economic growth, followed by higher education and primary education. The research results suggest that China should increase financial investment in education and optimize the expenditure structure of three-level education.